In 2018 Halima Aden, a Muslim Somali-American model, made international headlines as the first model of color to wear a hijab on the cover of British Vogue. And now the former Miss Minnesota USA semi-finalist has made a big splash, becoming the first model to wear a burkini and hijab in the swimsuit edition of Sports Illustrated (SI) magazine.

The Muslim model of Somali descent who was born in a Kenyan refugee camp where she lived until she moved to the United States, returned to her birth country for the photoshoot together with fashion photographer Yu Tsai.

“I keep thinking [back]to six-year-old me who, in this same country, was in a refugee camp. So to grow up to live the American dream [and]to come back to Kenya and shoot for SI in the most beautiful parts of Kenya – I don’t think that’s a story that anybody could make up”, Aden told SI.

While the majority of mainstream media outlets keep saying that the 21-year-old has broken boundaries with her burkini debut in SI’s Swimsuit edition, out in May, most social media users tend to not agree with that.

Many have claimed that her outfit was promoting “control” and “oppression” and even dubbed it “#1 symbol of women’s lack of freedom”.

Some said that the idea behind the SI Swimsuit edition was to actually wear one.

Others felt compelled to defend both the model and the magazine for using the “power of fashion” to promote diversity and inclusivity.

It may be Halima’s choice whether or not she wants to wear a hijab and burkini.

However, it is a piece of clothing that if you don’t wear it there are strict repercussions in many parts of the world. So to come to the West and wear it here is neither “woke” nor inclusive.

If Muslim women want to be of help and make real change perhaps they should go to Iran and Saudi Arabia and do some work liberating women there instead.